A Brighton man has been sentenced to eight years in prison for taking indecent images of two young girls.
Neil Schooley, aged 55, residing at Woburn Place, was found guilty of two disturbing incidents. In one case, he persuaded a young girl to undress and pose for a photograph, and just two days later, he exposed himself to her. These reprehensible acts occurred between 2017 and 2018 when the victim was under 10 years old.
Following the report of these offenses, an investigation was launched, during which a second girl revealed that Schooley had given her alcohol, requested she disrobe, and photographed her. These additional offenses occurred between June 2016 and June 2018 when the second victim was between 10 and 13 years old.
Schooley was arrested and subsequently charged with three counts of taking indecent images of a child and two counts of causing or inciting sexual activity with a child. Despite pleading not guilty to all charges, he was found guilty of each offense after a trial at Hove Crown Court in July.
During sentencing at the same court on Friday, August 31, Schooley was sentenced to eight years behind bars. Additionally, he has been placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register and issued a Sexual Harm Prevention Order, which significantly restricts his access to children and vulnerable individuals
Detective Constable Joe Murray, of the Safeguarding Investigations Unit, said: “Neil Schooley betrayed the trust of his young victims and their families for his own sexual gratification.
“The seriousness of these offences and the harm they have caused was recognised by this sentence, which was the maximum available for these crimes.
“I would like to thank both of these two brave girls for reporting the incidents, supporting our investigation and helping to bring Schooley to justice.
“Please report to Sussex Police online, via 101 or, in an emergency, by dialling 999.”
